Type A Personality
by CharlieMichelle
Summary: There were many different sides to Jem, the obvious and the not so obvious. The group had pretty much determined that Jessie was the only person that would see the multiple sides of Jem, the deeper sides. The serious sides and maybe she got to see the loving sides. Jem/OC, AU. Rating for language because Fanfiction will take it down if I don't rate accordingly.


**A/N: Holy crap, fourteen pages later guys! Alright so this has taken me about a month to write... I still have one more one shot for the Avengers (it's a good one) to post before I leave (20 days until basic training!) so I'll be able to finish that. Anything else I started I won't be able to post until after basic (after Thanksgiving). So this is my author hiatus as well... crying is acceptable. Anyways, I hope you like this! Oh and has anyone else noticed the difficulty in writing out Boston accents? **

**Disclaimer: I don't own The Town, clearly if I did I wouldn't be going to basic training...**

* * *

There were at least several sides to James Coughlin, all of which could be related to the angrier emotion. He could feel other emotions as well, he felt disdain, he felt fear, and at one point or other he's felt love. It didn't matter what he was doing that would spike out of character feelings, typically the man was about as cold as a rock. He smiled, but it wasn't real, and when he laughed it was to a dirty crude joke coated with bottles upon bottles of beer.

There were though at least several sides to James 'Jem' Coughlin and maybe she was the only one who got to see them. Jessica 'Jessie' Wiltson was a newer resident in Charlestown, as to why she moved to the broken and gut wrenching city was beyond anyone, but she lived in the same building as the favorable Jem Coughlin, in fact on the same floor. The funny thing was it was by pure accident that she would get to see all of his multiple colors.

* * *

1: Anger

* * *

He was raging, he was pissed, and god fuckin' damn it he was bleeding out in his own god damned kitchen! "Get the fuck on with it!" he growled at his long time friend Doug 'Dougy' MacRay who was trying to help, but apparently was failing.

"I'm tryin' but you won't quit ya squirmin'!" They've been at this for close to ten minutes now, the wound in Jem's leg getting impressively larger every time he struggled. "Seriously, calm the fuck down fucker."

"I have a hole in my leg!" Jem lurched forward only to have Dez and Gloansy jump on him to push him back down. "Let me the fuck go!"

Doug held his hands up as if to offer surrender; "A'right! If you can't sit still we got no choice but to take your ass to the hospital."

"Fat chance fucker." Jem snorted before he inspected the damage in his leg again, "Grab me a fuckin' band-aid slap some alcohol on this bitch."

Doug pressed a hand to his face; "You got your leg caught on a fuckin' fence… Hello Kitty isn't fixin' this for you! Either you let me stitch it up or I'm takin' you to the god damn hospital." It would have been so much easier if Doug would have just given Jem the fucking band-aid and vodka but this time Doug wasn't so sure that would do it.

"Well I ain't goin' to no hospital so suck that idea off my dick." He wiped at the blood again; "Mother fucker."

"Hold up now, isn't ya neighbor some hospital workin' babe?" Jem looked up to Dez with a clear expression of 'are you fuckin' nuts?' on his face.

"Does it matter if my neighbor is a fuckin' toonie nurse?" Dougy swore was going to knock Jem out.

"Gloansy go get 'er." Doug ordered solidly, he watched their friend walk out of the kitchen before he turned around and asked for her apartment number. It sparked a few more crude sentences to escape the Irish-man's mouth before Doug responded with a tight "just find her".

"I don't need some fuckin' woman comin' in 'ere a-" Doug sent a cold enough glare in Jem's general direction to get him to shut up.

So the cut in his leg really wasn't **that** bad, Doug would admit to that. He's seen worse on himself and Jem combined but it was still an unclean wound and they needed Jem to be at his absolute best for this next job.

When the knock resounded on the door Jessie was attempting to sleep on her lumpy old sofa listening to her foreign neighbors next door scream at each other in either Spanish, Japanese, or a combination of both. She was about to resort to the herbal sleep remedy her foster mother used to use on her when five loud knocks broke through her attempted peaceful environment.

She froze and hoped to God that they would just go away, unfortunately God had other plans; "Alright, I'm coming!"

When she answered the door she was impassive, when she did a quick double take at her current… guest well she was fully prepared to give up every possession, "I didn't know robbers knocked before they stole…"

"I ain't 'ere for ya' shit." She deemed the big man in front of her was grumpy but the urgent look on his face seemed real enough. "Look my buddy lives right down the hall and we need ya' help."

She shook the daze out of herself, she did after just finish a twenty four hour shift. "Oh, uh, what happened?" She turned away from him as he was explaining, rather pathetically, some cover story as to how 'Jem' got this 'serious' injury.

After finding her Ugg boots, clad in her baggy D.C. sweatpants and black tank top she followed 'Goony', she'd be the only one to call him that, to the trashed apartment down the hall. When she walked in there were three men, the blonde closed shaved man was behind a mean looking, loudly grumbling, and bleeding man, but the calm tall one with the stubble seemed nice.

"Who the fuck is this?" Jessie simply smiled before coming over by the tall one; "Se'ously she's fuckin' sport'n D.C.!" She huffed out a breath.

"Dougy." The tall one extended his hand to the side towards the tired woman. "That tha' is Jem."

She shook his hand and raised an eyebrow; "He seems relaxed, so tell me again how this happened?" She crossed her arms.

"Tha's a fuckin' hole in my fuckin' leg! Fuckin' fix it!" Jem leaned forward again and with a quick nod from Dougy the close shaved blonde, who almost silently introduced himself as Dez, held him down.

"You think you can help us?" Dougy asked with a quick smile, of course she could help but she liked egging the small on.

"I'm used to hearing babies cry where I work, but they're usually premature babies being poked and prodded by the doctors." Jem just glared but she shrugged and kneeled down to inspect it. "six maybe seven stitches."

"Are you fuckin' insane!?" He lurched forward as if he was going to grab around her neck but when she flinched and tensed he forced himself back, "can you fix it o' not?"

She looked up at him and shrugged carelessly. "I guess if you provide me with clean material." She looked up at Dougy as he passed her the already sanitized thread and needle; "do you have any rubbing alcohol and clean rags?"

When she received a blank stare she pushed herself up; "Right, give me a few minutes I'll grab my stuff."

"Give you a few minutes? Fuckin' really!"

"What he really means is thank you." Dougy sighed out as she waved behind her. He looked at Jem who was glaring harshly at him; "You could act a little nice'a towards her."

"You could shut the fuck up." Jem turned his head the opposite direction when Jessie walked back in the room.

She went to work silently, he didn't wince, or shout or carry on the entire time. She cleaned, stitched, then cleaned the wound again before wrapping his leg and explaining what she wanted him to do with it.

"Oh and next time you boys want to bust a place," they all quickly jumped to their own defense she held up her hand and continued, "I don't care what you rob, how you do it, or where… just try not to get too banged up."

She wasn't two feet out of the apartment before she heard Jem roar; "Fuckin' cunt!"

* * *

It was assumed that after the 'fence' incident Jessie would be there to patch them up need be, and it was assumed that she would make herself available. There was only one big issue with this whole plan… Jessie was an NICU nurse in the city working as many shifts as possible to keep her shitty and border line apartment to herself. Since the two months of being awkwardly called upon had come to pass Jessie deemed herself their friend. Jem deemed her as a liability that was unnecessary.

* * *

2: Annoyance

* * *

It was after a particularly nasty job when they needed Jessie and she wasn't on top of her game. She yawned, rubbed her eyes, and staggered multiple times and that was just leading the men into her kitchen. "Okie dokie, I'll take the injured one in the bathroom." She yawned half way through the word bathroom.

Although Jem should be grateful for her presence and skill, he WAS the one who seemed to get hurt most of the time, the others had their fair share amount of treatments from the young nurse he simply wouldn't have it. "She looks like she'll fall ov'a"

She shrugged and led Dez, he got beat pretty good, to her bathroom. "Alright what happened?"

"Got caught when we wa' leavin' the…" she held up her hand and shook her head. "What hearin' this make you upset Jessie?"

She smiled a little tired smile and prodded at the cut on Dez's shoulder; "I don't really **enjoy** hearing about you boys running off and causing shit, but I know you've done it and have come to terms that you aren't going to stop any time soon."

Dez attempted to shrug but her vise grip was unsurprising by now. "No ma'am." She liked Dez, he was like that kid brother, that happened to be older then her, of the group and she found his company enjoyable.

When she finished patching, there really wasn't much to do, she patted him on the head and made her way to the kitchen. "Not that I don't love you all, but I would really like to get some sleep so…"

"What the nine hou's before we got 'ere weren't enough?" She rolled her eyes at Jem and ignored him.

"I'll get the guys out for ya." Dougy said as he made his way passed her, he always pressed a small kiss to her cheek and slipped some money in her pocket. Only Jem knew that she slid the money back under his door a few hours later before it enticed her. That pissed him the fuck off too. It was like she couldn't appreciate that they appreciated her.

"Maybe I don't wanna' go." She slouched against the counter and silently begged to herself that he wasn't being serious. "What you don't you want me to stay?"

"Not really." She quipped but shrugged towards Dougy, Goansy, and Dez. "You boys have a good day, the remote is on top of the T.V. try not to eat all my food."

As the men left, except for Jem, she made her way to her small bed room, still clad in her work uniform from the previous two shifts she picked up. She thought she was scotch free as she was pulling clothes out of her closet until she heard Jem come into her room.

"The fuck is this shit?" She heard him grumble out as she stepped back from her closet. She looked around her room, nothing was amiss, her mattress was on the floor (as always) and her small dresser had all of its appropriate décor.

"What the fuck is what?" He just stood there with a complexion of 'are you kiddin' me?'. Which she wasn't, she seriously didn't see what was wrong.

"You know they sell bed frames right?" She looked back at her mattress and shrugged, that annoyed him. That annoyed him to no end, it always did when she would shrug herself off as if it didn't matter. She was living in one of the toughest cities of the United States and she didn't even have a proper bed frame?

"Well I'm not really home enough to spend an ungodly amount of money on it." That also annoyed him, they each gave her money and each time he'd find an envelope sealed with all of it under his door. "Not to mention me carrying and assembling a bed frame by myself? Not likely." That annoyed him as well, it was like she didn't know she could turn to someone for fucking help.

"You know what doesn't make any sense about you?" She walked into her bathroom and shouted over her shoulder for him to continue, he was going to anyway, "Ya' pa'ents let you live out 'ere without any help f'om them, and ya' ok with that."

He waited for something to indicate that she had heard him, when he didn't get any reaction he walked over to the bathroom to watch as she shook her hair out. He leaned against the bathroom doorway and ushered with his hands for her to answer; "I was in a foster home from the time I was six until Mr. and Mrs. Conoway adopted me."

"Shit." She shrugged off the cuss, that annoyed him. She shrugged off everything as if **nothing** bothered her and he felt like she did it on purpose. "How long was that?"

"Little over eight years I guess, my parents weren't fit to raise a child and one day a neighbor decided to see that I was treated right. Long story short I traveled a lot, didn't make tons of friends, didn't get elected prom queen…"

"That's completely relevant how?"

"Well you interrupted me, but it was always a daydream. They adopted me when I was about twelve maybe thirteen. I lived with them, they charged nothing, I excelled in school." She led him out of her small bathroom and into her living room before she grabbed a spare blanket and pillow.

"So why Charlestown?" She ushered him to sit, which he did, but it annoyed him that she put so much effort into his comfort and care.

"I spent my teenage life living on a side road in Washington D.C., Charlestown is a little more hands on with roughness but other than that it isn't something I can't handle." He felt like a kid as she attempted to get him to lay down, eventually he snapped at her and she stopped and held her hands up. "Besides it was the only hospital in a city I could find to hire me."

"So what do you do?" She was going to remark on the fact that he's never taken this much interest in her before but bit her tongue, hearing him talk civilly and normally was rare and embraced.

"Depends, I'm mostly in the NICU with little sick babies, but since I cover shifts I could be in the E.R. receiving patients, or pediatrics." He nodded and the awkward silence began again, until she broke it. "I don't like what you and boys do, but that's not why I don't accept the money."

He raised an eyebrow; "So what? You just bein' stubborn?"

"I personally think that you guys do what you do because you need to." He didn't correct her, but it annoyed the shit out of him that she always saw good and no bad. "I know you all do drugs, I've seen you high more times then you've seen me in scrubs, but that's Charlestown for you."

He watched her walk into her room again and the soft click of her door told him that he was in fact welcome to whatever it was he wanted to do. Really he just wanted to make his position clear with her, lay it down on the line, but then she did that annoying shrug of indifference. She did that annoying as shit clueless look whenever he insulted her, as if she didn't know what she was doing.

As he stared at her blank T.V. screen he decided to storm out, because he needed his hit and if he didn't get one soon he would be seriously annoyed all day. He was seriously annoyed though when his hit didn't work like he wanted to, sure he was pretty much numb and relaxed and all that other shit but he was still annoyed with her. While she's in her small little run down apartment with him at the opposite side of the hall he was thinking about how she actually valued them. She cared about them, worried, and returned the cash because she didn't want to impose on **them**… and that annoyed him.

* * *

Two weeks after Jem came to his high realization of her position with the group the bantering stopped. He found himself letting himself into her apartment, it was never locked, and he always scolded her for it. Dumb bitch would get fucked up if she didn't lock the door. Her argument was always the same; "If someone's going to break in, it won't matter if the doors locked."

The two became civil fast relieving the other three of the group and Jem would find himself with the rest of the men checking in on her and making sure she was alright. In fact the men got so good at it that they could tell by her voice if she was tired, angry, or just not peachy. They could tell by how she wore her long dark hair that day if she had NICU, E.R., Pediatrics, or a sleep day. They could tell that after their jobs if she wasn't in the mood for company they'd keep silent, but if she was it'd be hours before they actually left.

It was weird.

* * *

3. Possessiveness

* * *

"What the fuck do you mean you don't fuckin' know?" Jem slammed his hands down onto the cluttered kitchen table thus causing Jessie to jump a practical three feet in the air. This time though he wasn't going to relent just because she jumped.

She just shook her head and looked down at her lap. "As I said Jem, I don't know what they looked like." Her hand went to her face before she felt a hand grab it back down.

"Stop fuckin' touchin' it." Dougy said gruffly before taking the damp rag and dabbing at the cut on her cheek. "Dez and Gloansy back yet?" Dougy asked the now pacing and cursing Jem.

"No." He stopped and looked at Jessie; "Fuckin'… you don't remember nothing'?"

She scoffed, "You do realize if I did I'd have already called the police." She didn't know what was so incredibly funny when Jem started barking with laughter. "What?"

"Nah sweet'at you know bette' then to call the cops." Jem swiped at his face coming down from his laughter before he got serious again; "We need to know who did this to ya'."

"I'm fine." Jessie hissed out while Dougy placed the warm rag on a different cut, maybe it was a bruise, she didn't know. She hadn't seen her face since the event.

"Ya' not fine, stop sayin' ya' fine." Dougy growled out as the two others of the group came into the already cramped kitchen. "You find anything?"

Dez shook his head, "Nothin' whoeve' fuckin' did it was good."

"Well ain't that shit fantastic." Jem said sarcastically as he scratched the back of his head. "You see why we tell ya' to lock ya' fuckin' door? So shit like this, doesn't happen!" She didn't have a response so a thick swallow and wavering eyes would have to do, Jem thought she looked more remorseful then anything else.

What they didn't expect was for her to push her seat back and to start walking towards the exit of the small apartment. "Excuse me, my shift starts in an hour."

"You can't go in lookin' like that Jessie." Gloansy said blocking her way. He reached for her shoulders but she shrugged him away. "C'mon sweet'at sit back down let Dougy finish cleanin' ya up."

"Thanks but no. I can't afford to take any time off." She tried to get through him again but this time was a grip on her hand that made her stop. "What?" She turned around and was shocked to see Jem standing there with… concern in his eyes?

"Jessie take the night off, ya' can affo'd one night fo' ya self." He had slowly managed to pull her a little closer to him. "Please, for the team."

She let out one shudder and that was when he knew. She was scared, she lost control of a situation and it frightened her but her only defense was jumping right into her job. She wouldn't focus on herself, something he knew she desperately needed, and she'd eventually push everything aside.

"I need to go to work." She whispered it, maybe to herself, or maybe to him but when he watched her eyes fill he knew it didn't matter. Someone had not just laid a hand on his friend, but they've managed to scare her into a ball of emotion that she didn't normally face.

She barely had a second to register that he had pulled her into a comforting hug, she barely noticed that she was crying maybe not sobbing but her tears were streaming into his track jacket and she knew the second his arms encircled her and his scent engulfed her senses that it was seriously alright. She gripped his jacket and let herself tremble, the first time she's done so since twenty seconds after the boys found her in her ransacked apartment.

"Clea' out." Jem demanded to the other three men, they all knew Jessie well enough to know her crying all over Jem (who'd have thought) would be more then enough for her potential embarrassment. Dougy nodded and led Dez and Gloansy back to her apartment to fix up what they could.

The pair stood like that for a few moments before she started to pull back; "I'm sorry, I know how you hate human interaction with me." She attempted a joke but it only made him angrier.

"Cut the shit." She nodded silently before she stepped out of the shockingly safe embrace. "Ya' can't go to wo'k."

"I have to." Why was she always so fucking stubborn? Jem thought to himself as he rubbed his hands over his face; "I don't rob banks or armored vehicles. I don't sell drugs. I don't steal cars then resell them, I need to go to work. I need the money…"

"Ya' need sleep." He countered back as he disregarded everything she said. "And ya' need to tell me who did it."

She backed away from him and stood defensively, "I already told you I didn't know."

"An' I al'edy said people a'ound he'e like to make themselves known." He stepped towards her and made his position very clear. "If ya don't tell I'll hea' it on the st'eets."

"It doesn't matter if I tell you or not, you're gonna' do something rash and dangerous." The ridiculousness in her sentence almost sent him laughing all the way down the hall to her trashed apartment to tell the others.

"Baby, don't ya' know me by now?" She scoffed but he ignored it, he initiated the hug again this time (once he was able to reach her) and squeezed every time he felt her mouth open to speak. "I p'tect my people, I p'tect my family, but most of all I p'tect what's mine."

She'd let it slide that he hinted on how he must have been feeling but she relented and told him the names anyway. The shit eating grin on his face afterwards would have been incredibly adorable had she not had the shit beat of her for him to get it.

He called the boys back up and the four of them made their plan, they weren't going to wait even an hour before heading out and handling the problems. Jem called out for Jessie (she argued and dodged enough to try his patience) and got her settled in his room. "Be careful."

"Sleep." He countered before he left the room. He'd be careful, real careful especially when he was mimicking where they hit her on her face, stomach, back, etc. People need to learn not to fuck with him.

* * *

Although obnoxious and sometimes down right mean Jem liked to think of himself as a funny guy. He could make his niece laugh just by looking at her! Jessie would forever believe that it was simply the child's way of saying my uncle is a lunatic. Despite the difference of opinion both of them find the same comical relief in reruns. They currently loved to watch reruns of Seinfield and King of Queens, an odd combination but if meant that the two of them weren't fighting all the time then it was well worth the oddness.

Besides the reruns they also loved sharing inside jokes, bizarre inside jokes that really didn't make any sense. Dougy dropped a plate, Jem made a smart ass comment, two weeks later him and Jessie are laughing hysterically over this smart ass comment. It clearly made no sense, but yet again if it meant that the two of them weren't fighting it was well worth it.

* * *

4. Humorous

* * *

It was rare when the entire group managed to find itself together without injuries, well except for Dez the poor man just didn't understand the extreme temperature difference between a plate and the grill. However after the half twitted dance he managed to do around the small yard and after Jessie managed to fix him just enough for it to be bearable Jem made the smart ass comment.

"You think ya' 'eal funny, don't cha'?" Dez grumbled from his now permanent seat at the wooden picnic table. "Fuckin' twat."

"'Ey fuck you!" Jem called back before he looked over his shoulder at Jessie; "Clea'ly this heat is to much fo' him."

Not one other person laughed, except for Jessie, because no one really got it. He made horrible puns that often times left people more confused then anything or he made some kind of stereotypical Irish joke (again no one really laughed at those) but for some reason Jem managed to make Jessie laugh by saying the stupidest of shit.

"What I don't unde'stand 'ere is how you can make ha' piss ha'self by sayin' something so half witted it ain't even funny to begin with, but I can't get the gi'l to smile afta' wo'k." Dougy said as he started passing platters around.

Jessie just shrugged; "I have an insane sense of humor."

"Ya' and me both." Jem grumbled before he grabbed at some potato salad. He had to admit the chick could make some good ass food.

"Clea'ly we miss something when they talk." Gloansy said while he snatched said potato salad away from Jem. "And clea'ly ya' think this is all fo' you."

"I don't have to think." Jem replied hotly before shoving a forkful of the chunky mess into his mouth. Jessie let out another squeak of laughter to which Jem winked at. The chick could be adorable when she wasn't annoying.

"Al'ight enough." Jem's blonde sister said before she placed her toddler in between her and Dougy. "I just wanna' eat."

"So shut the fuck up and eat." Jem said hotly but stopped short when he felt a chunk of potato hit is forehead.

"We went over this Jem." Gloansy could have shit a brick. "I don't appreciate you spoiling that poor child's mind with your horrendous language."

Dez did shit a brick; "Whoa, whoa, whoa… you must have some ute'us if you think you can talk to Jem like that."

Jem appeared to be completely fine with it, which caused Dougy to shit a brick, drop an few cusses, and then dodge a chunk of potato. "Watch ya' self Dougy, chick's got an a'm."

"Ya' not gonna' say something to he' about the potato?" Dougy asked, still in a state of 'What the fuck?' but Jem's shrug and smirk was the only answer he got.

"He knows better." Jessie smirked before she went to take a sip of her beer.

"Puddin'." It was an awkward silence that followed the choking noise coming from Jessie as she instantly started cracking up; "I still don't find that amusing… at all."

"You wouldn't because you're inhuman." She replied back before she took some food from her plate to start eating.

"Scooby fuckin' Doo." Another awkward moment followed by a sincerely choking Jessie. "That sto'y will neve' die babe."

She wheezed took a gulp then replied; "And your fascination with food coming out of my nose is freaking weird." He raised his fork full of potato about to launch it back before his sister interrupted pointing out that she did not actually use a word that was too inappropriate. "I win… babe."

"It's on, sweethea't." He smirked taking a bite of his burger.

"I'm fuckin' lost." Dez said, only to he haled by two pieces of potato. "What the hell! Jem you fuckin' to?"

He lifted his fork and pointed; "I'm telling ya watch ya' mouth around the kid. Jessie has sensitive ea's and I'll be damned if some asshole like you 'uins he'."

"Ok I've had enough." Dougy said before he pushed back in his seat. "It was weird enough that Jem is a wanna' be comedian but the fact that Jessie and Jem are a tag team? Nope, can't handle it."

"Ag'eed. I think it's we'd, you two ah' not that funny." Gloansy looked at the glare on Jessie's face; "Sah'y but it's tha' t'uth."

"I happen to think we're both hilarious people. Wouldn't you say so Jemmy?"

"I would Jess, we'e a couple of jokesta's that just ah'nt app'ciated." They both shrugged and let out a breath; "KOQ comes on in ten minutes."

"Good to know, thought you said we weren't watching it tonight?" Dougy, Dez, and Gloansy seemed to have given up. There was no point in cracking the duo (maybe they didn't need cracking), some things just appeared funnier to the people involved then to those around it.

* * *

As warmer seasons rolled out colder ones rolled in, it was just how things worked. With that came Jessie's wonderful season of headaches, but not just headaches ever sense she was a little girl the winter would throw cold after cold at her, keeping her home from school with the flu, sending her home from school with a virus. It was just how her life went, as she got older it went from little things like the cold and flu to bigger things like tonsillitis, or her personal favorite was pneumonia.

The three men, Krista, and Shyne (who hadn't met Jessie until that comedic picnic) adjusted as such. They only called her down in the middle of the night if they really needed it; most times for Jem but that was besides the point. Krista, who had become more and more used to Jessie, would determine when to call her. If the situation needed a little more then a Hello Kitty band-aid with some alcohol rubbed in she'd bend and knock on the always tired nurses door. Wasn't often that Krista knocked on her door, Jem deemed it most times unnecessary.

* * *

5. Fear

* * *

He's only ever really been afraid three times in his life. The first time had been his first job for Fergie, he'd never admit it but he was scared shitless. Who wouldn't be going into such a shady situation with a shady old man as leader? Well as the saying goes all's well end's well, and he learned that being afraid was pathetic of him. The second time he was truly afraid was right before they put him behind bars, the stories he heard didn't help. He didn't want to be there, he sincerely wanted to go home… but that wasn't the case. After nine years and his release he again realized how childish it was for him to be frightened, even though Bubba from two cells down took a liking to him.

The third time, to date, he was actually afraid was in the middle of the afternoon. He was bored and knew Jessie was home from work so he figured he'd go down and see if she wanted to do something, what to do he wasn't sure but it was better then sitting in his place for hours on end. He knew she didn't lock her door (not even after the break in) but for some reason she got pissed when they didn't knock.

Two minutes later he was about to call her cell when he figured she was probably sleeping. He and the guys sometimes crashed in here, while she slept on her lumpy mattress on the floor, so it wasn't a big deal for him to walk in and take the couch. This time when he walked in he swore he'd shit a brick.

"Motha'fucka'." He mumbled as he took in the lump of Jessie on the couch. There were multiple bottles laying on her coffee table, most open, all prescriptions for what he didn't know he didn't check. He rushed over to Jessie, mumbled her name a few times, and finally checked for a pulse.

She wasn't acknowledging his presence, of course she wasn't she was doped up and knocked out! It worried Jem though, there were different medications on the table and mixing those things? It didn't usually end well, so why would someone like Jessica Wiltson mix them? Never once occurring to him that maybe it was a daily dosage for each and she was just sick Jem immediately thought the worse.

He lightly slapped her face, poked her, pinched her arm, shook her, yanked at her hair. At one point the man begged her (he'd deny it though) to wake up long enough for him to know she'd be alright. At another point Jem debated calling 9-1-1 or taking her to the hospital himself, but the plaguing thoughts of 'what if' stopped him. It was the small groan that left her lips that made him sit on the coffee table and run a hand over his face, but it was that reaction that he realized he was fucking scared.

"Jessie you need to wake up." He reached out again and squeezed her hand, it wasn't gentle because he was fucking pissed. "Now. Jessie you need to wake up now."

She whimpered before opening one eye; "Those medicines you're sitting on?" he nodded urging her to continue, thought maybe she fell back to sleep but the crease in her brow told him otherwise.

"What ah' they fo' sweethea't?" She groaned, then winced, then whimpered again. He was still scared but this time he was positive it was a different type of scared. "Jessie ya' need to talk to me."

She squeezed her eyes tighter; "Migraines." He felt his body sag with relief, his heart still hammered and his hands he swore wouldn't stop shaking but she wasn't doing something stupid and she wasn't killing herself so it made it ok.

That was when he took in her appearance, she was still in work clothes from her shift (who knew when that was) her hair was kind of just every where. Bags under eyes, thin coat of sweat glistening on her face. She was breathing funny and clutching her hands together. It was seconds later and she was hunched over the edge of her sofa spilling her guts. "Fuck."

It wasn't a clear mumble but Jem heard her and he helped her lean back again before he took note of her lovely left over puke. Looked like nothing but fluids, not that he was an expert on these kinds of things but what it seemed like was she probably hadn't eaten anything in a long time.

"How long you been in he'e?" She shrugged, shuddered, then whimpered yet again. These responses weren't helping his fear, ok now he'd admit it. He was scared that this was more serious then just a migraine. "Hold tight."

She felt her whole body lurch and instantly started protesting. She knew she was in Jem's arms but she didn't want to be there. It appeared that, that right there didn't matter because he was carrying her, as smoothly as possible, towards his apartment. Didn't stop the gags or the pain she felt with every move he took.

When the world stopped moving around her she realized she was on something soft and surprisingly comfortable. "What th-"

"Go back to sleep babe." It was the softest she heard his voice and sure as hell didn't argue with him. She steadied her breathing and accepted the awesome darkness that followed.

Uncharacteristically Jem took it upon himself to take care of her, went out and bought soup and shit, put cool compresses to her forehead then tried lukewarm, but the most shocking thing he did for the full twenty four hours that she inhabited his bed was when he'd sit in bed with her and just play with her hair loosely and gently.

When her eyes opened again there was still a throb but she could agree she felt almost perfect. When she got up to go back to her own place Jem had forced her back down and demanded she just rest until she was better, it was odd and brought a slight butterfly feeling to her stomach. The oddest part of that day however was when she asked why he was being so nice and he responded with; "Don't you fuckin' sca'e me like that again."

* * *

There was a turning point in the relationship between Jem and Jessie. It was thought that if there was going to be a change (there were bets being taken on such an event) that it would have been after the comedic discoveries. After the colder season in the city of Charlestown Jem began treating Jessie differently. In a good way, as Dougy would often tell her when Krista would point out how 'strange' her brother was being.

That change however didn't change what the men did, it didn't change why the originally brought Jessie into the team, and it most certainly didn't change the anxiety of the group. She would patch them up best to her ability, she'd deny the money (which Jem would take and end up using on her anyway), but worst of all she never questioned how it was they came across these injuries or money.

* * *

6. Acceptance

* * *

"There's nothing to admit." Jem said while he stood by his sink. He hated being cornered like this, despised it, but he thought that maybe he hated that Dougy wouldn't let the matter go.

"Ya' clea'ly in denial." Dougy said smugly from the small round wooden table, the way Jem was getting all flustered just proved his point even more. "Why can't you just admit that you and Jessie got something goin' on?"

"Cause we don't." Dougy laughed again but let up, only a little bit though. Jem continued to pound through the dishes before he wiped down his counter. "I don't think we do anyway."

Another laugh came from Dougy; "I'd say you do, she's he'e all the time, she's got you doin' dishes and keeping ya' place neat, and I don't think I've seen you this soba' in ages."

So maybe all of that was true, Jem thought to himself, maybe because of Jessie he's managed to keep his place neat and orderly, he hasn't had any real whores around, and him getting high all the time was practically the thing of the past. Not to say he doesn't do it, he still does, he can't escape the feeling he gets when he's high and no one is going to change that… but maybe Dougy boy had a point.

"I don't know what's goin' on." His cell phone going off interrupted him, not that it was important just a message from the girl of the hour. "We haven't slept together."

"I didn't say you did." Dougy replied before he took another swig of his beer. "Just think of that though, ya' ain't sleepin' with he' but you do a bunch of othe' shit with he'."

Jem just shrugged, he didn't really care about sleeping with her. There was a problem with that, he thought to himself, because he honestly didn't mind just spending time with her but him admitting that? Nope, wouldn't happen.

"Maybe you should but out." Jem said roughly while he glared at Dougy. In return the taller man shrugged before he tipped the bottle back finishing its contents.

"I'll catch ya' later." Doug left the now brooding Irish man, but not for long. Less then an hour later Jessie was sitting in the same place Doug was.

"Something's off about you." She said while she picked at the dinner that Jem and graciously made, ok so he went to the store and bought some T.V. dinners, but she never complained. "Everything alright?"

"Fine." She made a suspicious 'uh huh' sound but she seemed to have let the subject drop. "What ah' we?"

She raised an eyebrow; "I…"

"I mean, I've accepted we'e f'iends, I've accepted that I've changed because of you, but I ain't getting ass out of it."

She nodded and laughed a little, he wasn't one for wording things in the most romantic way, but then again he had a point. "I thought you got ass out of your friends… guess I was wrong." she would play it off as a joke as best she could.

"Don't get me sta'ted on who I have and haven't talked to."

She sighed, she didn't know what they were as far as she was concerned they were two best friends… but in recent time she could believe otherwise. She spent hours at his apartment and he spent hours at hers, she ate dinner with him almost every night. Whatever she needed he got (against her will) and whatever broke he fixed (to the best of his ability). There may have been a few chaste kisses here and there, but they weren't anything other a brotherly kiss… right?

"What do you want us to be?" She couldn't believe her ears to her own voice.

"It don't matta'." She laughed again and took a sip of her water. "See I've already accepted us as mo'e then f'iends."

She found it hard to not laugh, "are we in high school Jem? More then friends really?"

He seemed slightly disgruntled at her response, instead of doing anything about it he pouted and continued to eat. "Jem, have you accepted that you and I could be in a relationship?"

"I've thought about it, su'e." He took a deep breath before he put his fork down, finally he made eye contact with her. She was mocking him with her eyes, he loved it, but that annoyed him.

"You've thought about it…" she was still fucking mocking him. "…well I've thought about it too."

"Oh good, now that we'e both on the same page." He mocked her with a sly smile but she just laughed it off. "You accept it yet?"

She stood up and took her empty T.V. dinner tray to the trash before she chugged some more water. "I've accepted that you've been unusually nice and maybe its because my charm has won you over."

"Bullshit." He stood up, intentionally leaned up against her, damn did it feel good. "I think you finally accepted that I'm a keepa'." He pressed a kiss to her neck, trailed small kisses down to her shoulder, before he finally turned her around and kissed her lips.

"You're just an accepting guy."

* * *

The best time for the group was when Fergie didn't need them as often, when Jessie could hang out with them without a first aid kit (although with them it was always better to have one), and when Jem didn't have to act so strange around her. The pair had made their mark on the group, not really into the public displays of affection Jem and Jessie mostly kept the intimate shit between themselves and the bed. That didn't stop Jem from getting pissed when someone would offend her though… or that one time when he got a phone call from one of her nurse friends and was informed that a drunk patient managed to get one good hit in.

That shit didn't fly with him.

* * *

7. Soft, Tender, Caring, Loving… basically everything she shouldn't see but does.

* * *

Tonight was a perfect example of when Jem would come into her apartment and in blatant terms cuddle with Jessie on her lumpy old sofa. He waltzed right on in as if he owned the place, at this point maybe he did, and took he position. He sat on one end then pulled Jessie to lean (or lay he wasn't picky) against him.

"How was the job today?" She asked him while he silently played with her hair.

"The same as any other day." That was all she'd request out of him, "no one got hu't." She hummed her appreciation for that (although she knew he lied to her). They always got hurt, but ever since her and Jem became a little more open with their relationship he's been strict about what injuries got tended to.

Anything that didn't require potential hospital care simply wasn't looked at. Although she would appreciate his concern for her mental status, her concern for the men usually outweighed Jem's opinion. She wouldn't argue though, she'd just cuddle up next to him and accept his soft touches that no one else got to see.

"I would appreciate it if you didn't lie to me." She said in a sing song voice but his grip tightened. She sighed in contentment before she continued; "Seriously though, if someone needs me…"

"Someone does need you." He cut her off shortly before he pressed a brief but stern kiss to the top of her head; "I need you."

She blushed a little before she snuggled in deeper. This was a side of Jem that no one got to see, well except for Jessie. They would simply lounge like that, for hours or minutes it didn't really matter. Once she started yarning more frequently he would take her to her bedroom. He would tuck her in (now that she accepted the bed frame from him) and when she tugged on his arm he would lay next to her.

Tonight the tugging led to other things, more intimate, more seductive things. By the time they were finished Jem was positive he wasn't leaving, and he was alright with it. They laid basking in their silence after absolute mind blowing sex. He just played with her fingers while she whispered little things that weren't really romantic but for a man like Jem it was the mushiest shit he's ever heard.

"I love you." She wasn't sure if she heard him correctly, if it was something he hadn't meant for her to hear, or if she was somehow between awake and asleep. "Fuckin' ch'ist but it's true."

She rolled so she was facing him, his arms never left her though and his eyes held an actual sincerity. "I love you too." He smirked before he kissed her lightly. That was just a side of Jem no one would get to see…

* * *

There were many different sides to Jem, the obvious and the not so obvious. The group had pretty much determined that Jessie was the only person that would see the multiple sides of Jem, the deeper sides. The serious sides and maybe she got to see the loving sides. The entire group, including Jem's sister, would agree that Jessie was probably the best thing to happen to him.

* * *

**A/N: Well there you go! Clearly you can tell when I took breaks in my writing, you can also tell I was under the pressure to get this done... I'm sorry it wasn't my best but the point is that it's up and it's open for you lovely people to review! Thank you so much for reading! Leave a review please...**


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